Taming Storm
by Dawnspirit
Summary: Come in and you'll find out! I can't do summaries! Chapter two added.
1. Default Chapter

Taming Storm.  
  
A/N: Hello there! *Shocked silence* Yes I'm back and no, I'm not dead. I've been busy with schoolwork but I bet you're all sick and tired of hearing that. I suddenly had this idea for a story and decided to try and develop it. I can't promise that it'll turn out anything great and I certainly can't promise that I'll carry on with it and if I do, it won't be updated very frequently. I really, really, really need constructive criticism on this ok? *Makes a point of looking directly at Rayfan* Right, enjoy until I decide to reappear again!  
  
Claimer: Right, I'm sick of disclaimers so here's something different. I claim Sasha and nothing else until I introduce any other character from my twisted imagination. And when that time comes, I will inform you ok?  
  
Rayman's world was a place of peace and prosperity, constructed of lush green woodland and blue and silver snaking rivers of clear, uncontaminated water. Sometimes, if you looked hard enough, you could find a city or maybe a little country village, sometimes you could even find Aborigines who lived in no specific place. In Rayman's world, you could never know what to expect, as there was something of everything but you could always ask some of the older inhabitants if you needed help, you were practically guaranteed a helping hand. The two people who knew most about the world and its mysteries and secrets were Rayman himself, who was the Guardian and his best friend Sasha, an eighteen year old human girl who had been sent to Rayman's world by accident. As Rayman was the Guardian of the world, therefore he had to know his world inside out and Sasha was a quick learner, so she soon knew a lot of what Rayman knew of the world as he often spoke of it. These two where the people who most inhabitants of Rayman's world held responsible for maintaining the harmony and safety of the world. It was also these two who had overcome the three major monstrosities that had attempted to take control of the world and turn it into a place of terror and violence instead of the benign and calm place that its unknown creator had intended it to be. But theses three monstrosities, Mr Dark, Admiral Razorbeard and Andre were, (As Sasha would term it) peanuts compared with what was coming next. And this something was far beyond the power of Rayman or Sasha or even the mighty Polokus, the spirit of the world. Only another power, an ancient power that had been in existence since the dawn of time, though few had been fortunate enough to lay eyes on it, could equal the something that was coming to bring about the destruction of Rayman's world. And what was this something and what was the power that could equal it? Only one person knew and it was neither Rayman nor Sasha. It was Jano, the Guardian of the Cave of Bad Dreams.  
  
And so begins our story:  
  
***  
  
"Woah, will you listen to that rain?"  
  
"Hmmm." Rayman and Sasha were sitting up in the tree house in a zombie-like stupor, the reason for which was the rain, as it had prevented them from going outside to attend the bonfire that their friend Jano had planned. Both Sasha and Rayman, but particularly Sasha, disliked having nothing to do and when that scenario was inflicted on them, it invariably resulted in a sleepy stupor, from which they occasionally emerged from long enough to exchange a few words and then dropping off again. Rayman was gazing absently out of the window, not seeming to mind that he couldn't really see a lot because of the rain. Sasha was slumped on her bed with her eyes closed, day-dreaming and only came round from her illusions of what she might be doing at the bonfire when she heard Rayman say something that caught her attention.  
  
"I hope Jano's ok." Sasha's eyes flickered open, revealing that they were bright blue and the kind of eyes that appear to be able to see deeper than the exterior.  
  
"Why shouldn't he be?"  
  
"Don't know, I was just wondering if he was feeling lonely. I mean, we've got each other to talk to, and Globox has got Uglette and all those kids. Jano's only got what's imprisoned in the cave and lets face it, he's practically imprisoned in there too." A lightening flash illuminated Sasha's face for a moment, and Rayman saw that she agreed with him. She stood up, stretched herself and spoke in a tone that told anyone who was listening that what she was saying was true, even though it wasn't the most pleasant of prospects.  
  
"We ought to go and see him, bonfire or no bonfire. It's not like we're doing anything else." She didn't wait for an answer but immediately crossed to a wooden cabinet and pulled out a bulky fleece coat and a long khaki coloured scarf, which she tossed to Rayman. "Wrap that around yourself. I've had to treat three hypothermia cases and I don't particularly want you to become a statistic. And don't look at it like that!" Rayman was giving it a look of utmost revulsion. "It's not that bad!"  
  
"Yes mum." Muttered Rayman and ducked as the pillow from Sasha's bed hit the wall, just above his head. Sasha's face was illuminated by another flash of lightening and the mischievous glint in her eye was sitting up and begging for a pillow fight. Rayman scooped up the pillow from his own bed and launched himself at his friend with an evil grin on his face. After several battles, most of which Sasha won handsomely and a few wrestling matches which threatened to cause the tree house floor to buckle, Rayman and Sasha were huddled at the bottom of the tree, trying not to think about the long walk in the rain that was stretching mercilessly out in front of them. The thunder seemed a lot louder when you were outside with it instead of on the other side of a sturdy wooden wall. Sasha turned her torch on and shouted to her friend over the noise of the storm.  
  
"It's this way isn't it?" Rayman followed her pointing finger and nodded.  
  
"Lets go, I'm gonna freeze if I don't move!" He stepped forward and immediately slipped on a large patch of mud. Sasha reached out and caught him before he landed in it and warned him to be careful. Then, with quite a few misgivings, they moved off in to the woods, which seemed a lot less inviting than usual. And Sasha had a nasty feeling that the uninviting atmosphere had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that they were walking in the middle of a violent storm, the likes of which had never been seen in Rayman's world and that they were walking in it at nine o clock at night. About ten minutes later, although to Rayman and Sasha it felt like ten hours, they arrived in a clearing which was totally unrecognisable to both of them even though they walked through it every time they visited Jano and in the very limited light, all the paths out of it looked identical and each one as hazardous as the next. Sasha cursed for not bringing her compass and Rayman was trying to distinguish the correct path out. He tapped Sasha's arm, not noticing that she had suddenly tensed up and was looking frantically around the clearing.  
  
"I think its this way, come on!" He ran off along a path, not hearing Sasha's frantic calls for him to come back through the thunder. Sasha watched in helpless desperation as he disappeared into the darkness. She felt horribly vulnerable on her own and she was sure she had seen something moving in the bushes ahead. She grabbed hold of her courage and took cautious steps forward, her fists clenched ready to defend herself if necessary, straining her eyes through the rain. She leant forwards and fell back into the mud with a scream as a blinding white light issued with a noise like the crack of a whip. Sasha blinked rapidly, half to get the water out of her eyes, half to recover from the light and scrambled to her feet, just in time to avoid being trampled by a grey jaded horse that had just leapt from the bushes. A scruffy green head collar was on its head and it looked completely out of place for this beautiful creature. For a moment, Sasha thought that the rain was obscuring her vision and making her see things that weren't really there. However, when the horse threw back its magnificent head and cried out in anguish to the heavens, Sasha was convinced that it was as real as she was. For a moment, Sasha forgot every word about being afraid as her attention was fixed on the creature that had seemed to appear out of thin air. She was certain that this was no ordinary horse, as the rain did not seem to affect it. The mane and tail of the horse were not all straggly as they should have been, considering the power of the rain pelting down. The eyes had so much spirit blazing within them, you could almost hear it daring you to approach it with a saddle. Sasha took a step towards it and the horse threw its head back again and shrieked again as though it were in pain.  
  
"Hey, hey, hey!! What's wrong?!" Abandoning all caution, Sasha rushed straight to its side and gasped as she caught sight of the dark red stains on the right foreleg. A horrible gash, spanning from the hoof to the knee bone was bleeding openly and it looked as though someone had slashed the poor creature with a knife. Sasha grabbed hold of the head collar and tried to clear stem the bleeding with her free hand. The horse shied away from her and shrieked again, almost trampling her. She jumped up and tried to calm it down.  
  
"Steady! Steady! It's alright, I want to help. Calm down, calm down." Sasha's voice seemed to have a calming effect on the horse, in any case it let her wipe away the blood and didn't shy away as she stood up and laid a hand on its face.  
  
"Sasha!" Rayman had noticed that Sasha hadn't been following, his voice cut through the clearing and the horse dodged away and cantered off into the darkness. Sasha called after it but it made no difference, it was gone and Sasha was left feeling strangely depressed.  
  
"Oh, Rayman, you scared it off!!" She exclaimed hotly.  
  
"Scared what off?" He replied impatiently.  
  
"The horse!! You scared it off, didn't you see it?!"  
  
"No. Where was it?"  
  
"Right in front of me, you must've seen it!"  
  
"Well I didn't! C'mon, let's go." He walked off along the path again and turned around as Sasha looked over her shoulder, searching for the horse.  
  
"You'll never find it in this weather! Come on!" Sasha sighed and reluctantly followed him.  
  
***  
  
Jano was waiting just outside the cave holding a lamp, which he had had to re-light three times due to the pouring rain. He peered anxiously into the darkness, desperately trying to pick out the tall figure of Sasha or the smaller stature of Rayman. He had been holding this watch for an hour now and he knew that there was no doubt that they were coming no matter what, but the fact still remained that they should have arrived an hour ago. Relief soared through him as the powerful beam of Sasha's torch fell on his face and her voice fell on his ears.  
  
"Jano!" Sasha materialised out of the rain and she really looked a sight. The hair that had escaped being scraped up into her plait was plastered down onto her face and the brown colour of her hair now appeared to be almost black. Rayman was standing next to her, wrapped in the scarf and shivering violently. Jano dropped the lamp, closed a hand around Sasha's arm and yanked her into the warm, dry shelter of the passage leading to the cave, motioning for Rayman to follow. Sasha brushed her wet fringe out of her eyes, only to have it fall straight back again and grinned at Jano.  
  
"Well, we're here!"  
  
"I'm glad you still came actually, I need to tell you something." Sasha opened her mouth, presumably to ask what he needed to tell them but Jano swiftly cut across her. "But lets wait until we get into the cave. It'll be a lot warmer in there and you can dry off once I've got a fire started." Sasha shrugged and followed him along the passage, Rayman trailing along behind leaving muddy footprints. When they arrived in the cave, Jano busied himself with building a fire while Sasha removed her coat, slung it to one side and aided Rayman in untangling himself from the scarf. Sasha, after a good deal of swearing later, finally brought out her knife, cut him free and sat down on the floor next to him. They were briefly entertained by Jano bellowing himself hoarse at two miniature Cyclops monsters who had turned up and started scattering treasure everywhere.  
  
"Right." Jano fumed at Sasha and Rayman, his eye still glaring after the two hastily retreating monster. "First-" He turned his eye on his two friends, just in time to intercept a wary glance between them. Rayman and Sasha had both had experiences with Jano's formidable temper and neither of them wanted a repeat performance. Jano grinned and he felt his anger ebb away. "Don't look so worried. I don't bite you know!" His smile widened as Sasha and Rayman gave identical derisive snorts.  
  
"No, of course you don't Jano! This scar just appeared out of thin air!" Sasha poked the place on her arm where Jano had once sunk his teeth in, thinking that she had been an intruder into the cave. Jano opened his mouth to defend himself but caught the sparkle in Sasha's eyes and knew she was joking. She moved herself closer to the fire and raised her hands to it.  
  
"What did you want to tell us Jano?" Rayman's head snapped up as Sasha spoke and all attention was turned to the guardian of the cave.  
  
"I don't actually know what it is exactly." Jano said slowly. "But something's coming. Something bad, something dangerous." An unwanted and tense silence followed this announcement until Rayman, calm and methodical as always, broke it with- "How d'you know?" For an answer, Jano raised a hand in a gesture towards the roof of the cave and as they all looked up, a distant roll of thunder echoed around the cave. "Bad weather is never good. It always pre-warns of trouble, just like with Razorbeard, Mr Dark and Andre. With all those, the weather always took a nasty turn just before and after their time, remember? Now there's another storm and a storm so violent as this-" Another roll of thunder made his point. "- means big trouble. Even with my help, you two won't be able to equal it. Rayman, where are you going?" Rayman, who had stood up and crossed the cave to the exit turned around as Jano addressed him. "Back in a minute ok?" Without waiting for an answer, he ran out of the cave leaving Jano and Sasha staring at the fire, neither one wanting to break the silence but wanting the other to break it. Sasha looked up at Jano and saw the flickering flames reflected in his one eye. He looked worried. She bit her lip and inwardly debated whether to tell him about the horse she had seen, wondering if it had anything to do with the unknown danger approaching. She wanted to but was afraid that he might not believe her. She had absolutely no idea why she wanted to tell anyone but the incident with the horse had unsettled her in an unexplainable way and she felt that she had to share it with someone who could perhaps explain it, though why she felt that Jano could explain she had no idea. Sasha glanced at the Guardian again and made up her mind. In the most casual tone that she could impersonate, Sasha spoke.  
  
"I saw a horse today Jano." Jano's eye snapped up and he looked absolutely astonished.  
  
"You've seen Storm?"  
  
"You know about her?"  
  
"Oh, everybody knows about her. But hardly anybody's seen her. What did she do?"  
  
"Just appeared out of the rain and nearly flattened me. She had a green headcollar on but I don't think it was supposed to be there, it didn't look right. And she was hurt."  
  
"Storm, hurt?" Interrupted Jano in a sharp tone that he would normally never dare use with Sasha.  
  
"Yeah, I think someone went for her with a knife." Said Sasha, a little surprised at Jano's sharp tone that was edging on panic. Jano groaned and Sasha's enquiry as to what was wrong was diverted by Rayman puffing into the cave.  
  
"It's like drowning on the ground out there!" he gasped, shaking water out of his hair. He squelched forward and dumped a carefully wrapped bundle at Sasha's feet. She opened her mouth to ask what it was but changed her mind, as Jano already seemed to know. Sasha crouched down to help Jano and Rayman unwrap it, which they were doing as though the contents were made of glass. She pulled the last fold away, revealing a book. This book was medium sized and extremely old judging by the faded brown colours and yellow stained pages, which looked as though they might disintegrate into dust if someone blew on them. The cover had strange runes embossed on it and a title written in a language that Sasha couldn't understand, though Rayman and Jano didn't seem to have a problem.  
  
"The Book of the Ancients." They translated in unison.  
  
"And I had to almost flatten the Fairy Council to get my hands on it." Rayman added, a mischievous sparkle dancing in his eyes, not unlike the one that normally resided in Sasha's eyes. Sasha, who had opened the book, let out an exclamation.  
  
"They're blank!" She said, in reference to the pages. They were dusty and yellow with age but not a single word was written on them. Rayman nodded.  
  
"Yes, watch this." He placed a finger on one of the pages and spoke aloud in a clear voice. "Tell me what it means when a storm occurs in this world." He removed the finger and Sasha gasped as black spidery writing formed itself across the pages, as though an invisible hand was writing on it. Rayman leaned forward and began to read from it.  
  
"When a storm occurs in this world, it is always a warning of danger approaching in the future. The power of the danger can be judged by how violent the storm is. The more violent the storm, the more powerful the danger." Rayman looked up from the book and thunder echoed eerily around the cave. A wary silence followed and Sasha broke it by summing up the situation in two words.  
  
"We're screwed." Rayman privately agreed but Jano waved a hand over the writing, making it disappear and spoke.  
  
"Maybe not." Sasha and Rayman stared at him as he placed a hand on the page. "Tell us about Storm In Her Eyes." Sasha just had time to wonder what on earth Storm In Her Eyes might be before the book told her; A black and white illustration formed on the page, depicting a horse balancing gracefully on its hind legs against a back drop of raw tranquillity: A small lake with a weeping willow on the banks beneath a full moon. Sasha knew instantly that this was the horse that had almost trampled her. There was no headcollar to compromise the beauty of the handsome face, nor was there any gash on the leg but Sasha still knew that this was her.  
  
"Is this the horse that you saw?" Sasha tore her eyes away from the picture to find Rayman and Jano's attention fixed on her. She shifted awkwardly under their scrutiny and nodded.  
  
"That's her."  
  
"Alright." Jano turned his eye to the writing that had blossomed beneath the picture and read it out loud.  
  
"Storm In Her Eyes, often abbreviated to Storm, is the name given to a horse by the ancient inhabitants of the world. Storm In Her Eyes was the one chosen to receive the power of the ancients. This power is for the sole use of protecting and defending the world when it is in mortal danger. For this power to be used, the seeker must capture Storm. To capture her, you must have the Hyoran amulet which is currently in the possession of Shalaki. Shalaki?!" Jano's voice faltered and his eye widened. "Shalaki?!" He repeated again, disbelief and horror edging into his voice.  
  
"Yeah, Shalaki." Said Sasha, checking the word, puzzled at Jano's sudden change in manner. "What's up? Jano?" Jano had suddenly drawn into himself and when he spoke, his voice was different, smaller, shy almost.  
  
"It's nothing, I just somehow thought that she. Oh, God, Shalaki."  
  
"Jano!" Exclaimed Rayman. "Are you going to tell us who Shalaki is and why the mention of her name had rattled you?" Rayman's exasperated outburst seemed to bring Jano back to reality.  
  
"No." He said coldly. "No, I'm not. Now where was I?" He carried on reading from the book but neither Rayman nor Sasha was really listening. They were both desperately trying to identify what was going on behind Jano's eye. Jano stared at the page, reading from it but not really recognising his own voice, his concentration was elsewhere. Shalaki, alive after all those years.  
  
"Which is currently in the possession of Shalaki, the one remaining ancient alive." He closed the book and faced the questioning expressions of his two friends. "It's nothing." He repeated.  
  
"Ok." Sasha replied calmly, though inwardly she wanted to shake him. "Now what has Storm got to do with this danger that's coming?"  
  
"You told me that Storm was hurt. I think that this danger has attempted to catch and kill her, as it knows that she could bring ruin to them. You two need to find Shalaki, get that amulet, use to tame Storm and enlist her help in fighting this danger, whatever it may be. I need you to go back home and prepare yourselves for a three day journey. Come back tomorrow, I will have everything you need to find Shalaki here." Sasha and Rayman found themselves being hussled out of the cave.  
  
"Well!" Said Sasha, once they had been escorted back out into the rain and their escort had disappeared into the cave. "Who's Shalaki and how does Jano know about her?"  
  
"And what's she done to Jano to rattle him like that?" Sasha sighed and shrugged moodily, not bothering to answer. There were no answers to give. Lightening flashed across the sky and thunder rumbled, totally indifferent to the insults Sasha was hurling at it. Rayman closed his hand over his friends arm.  
  
"Come on, we can't stay out here all night." Cold, wet and miserable, they made their way back to prepare for a journey, not even knowing what to prepare themselves with. Little did they know that Storm was watching them, making sure that they got home safely. And it was only after the tree house slammed shut that she cantered away into the darkness.  
  
A/N: Yup, I know, not one of my better stories but never mind. One thing I forgot to mention, I'm still writing about Rayman as he was in Rayman 2, I just can't get on with the Rayman 3 look. Now you see that button in the bottom left hand corner? Well use it to review please, I'm desperate! 


	2. Chapter two

Taming Storm.  
  
Chapter two.  
  
A/N: Hey guys! Here's the second chapter and I sure hope that it won't be a disappointment! Tell me if it is, I'm not exactly winning any best author awards right now! Nothing much happens in this chapter but it should get slightly more interesting in the next one. I emphasise the word SHOULD. Oh yes, and I have been told by someone that "Jaded" means a worn out horse and I most certainly do not mean Storm to be a worn out horse. I meant mottled greys and whites, like a storm cloud. Sorry for any confusion I may have caused!  
  
Thanks to my reviewers!  
  
Rayfan: Hey, thanks! I must be doing a better job than I thought!  
  
TurquoisePhoenix: Thanks! Shalaki and Jano do go back a long way but saying anything more will be giving WAY too much away at the moment!  
  
Ryoko D: It's nice to be writing again too!  
  
Admiral Merco: (You've changed your screen name!) Thanks! You're doing a good job on the sequels to Dawn of Janus too!  
  
"Watch out!" Rayman's reflexes kicked into action and he ducked as a small rucksack hit the wall just above his head and scrambled out of the way before it could land on him. Sasha, red faced and frustrated, stormed over to the bag and gave it a good kicking.  
  
"Do you often throw things across the room when you are annoyed?" Rayman asked, seemingly oblivious to how dangerous it was to provoke Sasha into a worse mood. Sasha ignored him, brushed her hair away from her flushed face, picked up the rucksack and brandished it with the air of someone brandishing a head that had been separated from the body.  
  
"It doesn't hold anything!" She exclaimed, shaking it and watching angrily as the measly total of one pair of shorts, two tank tops and a worryingly low number of undergarments fell out on to the floor. Rayman smiled as she examined the former contents of the rucksack. "How'm I expected to survive a three day journey with just these?"  
  
"You're not, you can get a lot more in that."  
  
"I only got this lot in with a great deal of shoving down!"  
  
"Come on, I'll give you a hand." Rayman took the bag from Sasha and dumped the right way up on the floor. "Get what you want to take."  
  
Sasha glowered at the bag, muttered something that Rayman was grateful that he didn't hear and crossed to the wardrobe.  
  
Fifteen minutes later, six tank tops, three pairs of shorts, a pair of jeans, some T-Shirts and an adequate number of undergarments had been calmly and successfully packed into the bag by Rayman, along with a few other odds and ends that they might find useful on the journey. And there was still room for a lot more. Sasha had given up trying to help in the first five minutes and was now getting changed behind a screen.  
  
"There!" Said Rayman in a horribly patronising tone. "That wasn't so difficult!"  
  
"Beginners luck!" Sasha emerged from behind the screen, dressed in her old, faded, light blue jeans, a white sports top and her combat boots. She glanced over the bag from behind a pair of purple tinted sunglasses, then looked at Rayman. "Alright, well done! That's a lot better than I could ever do!" Rayman smiled, he knew that Sasha hated having a member of the opposite gender being better at her than something, even something as pathetic as packing a bag.  
  
"What're you taking in the way of weapons?"  
  
"Weapons?!" Exclaimed Sasha, as though the thought had never crossed her mind. "What do I need weapons for? I've got my martial arts and they take up no space!"  
  
"Martial arts sometimes fail and your gunbelt and knife will take up no space. Not in the bag anyway."  
  
"Fine, fine." Sasha strode over to the wardrobe, retrieved the gunbelt and put it on. She opened the gun cabinet and had a brief discussion with Rayman over which gun to take. After some argument, she finally chose an air pistol and holstered it and shoved some spare clips for it into her bag as an afterthought. Finally, she strapped her knife to her boot and looked at Rayman.  
  
"Happy?" She enquired.  
  
"Perfectly." Replied Rayman with a mock bow. He watched as Sasha pulled on her coat, struggled between the shoulder straps of the rucksack and staggered slightly under its weight.  
  
Rayman opened the wooden door and threw his weight against it, expecting gale force winds and torrential rain but found out that he had jumped to conclusions. A beam of sunlight fell on his surprised face and there was a light breeze lifting his hair slightly.  
  
"Blimey!" Sasha had stepped out onto the platform, openly marvelling at what seemed to be a totally different world. There was no rain, the sky was clear and the sun was beating down on the ground. There was no sign that the storm had ever occurred at all, even the ground was dry and not at all churned up as it should be. Rayman joined his friend on the platform and watched her struggling out of her coat. His face showed indifference but his voice betrayed his anxiety.  
  
"I don't like this. Even a world as magical as this would show after effects of that storm." Sasha straightened up, her coat rolled up and squashed under her arm.  
  
"You think it was stopped by something?"  
  
"That's exactly what I think."  
  
"Trying to make us think the storm was a one-off, that it was irrelevant?"  
  
"You got it."  
  
"Well maybe Jano's got answers. C'mon." Sasha began to climb down the tree, closely followed by Rayman. When they reached the bottom, they barely had time to take a step away from the tree before the sound of thundering hooves came to their ears and the sight of Storm charging along the dirt track straight at them. Storms eyes were bright and happy and her mane and tail were flowing out behind her. One of Sasha's smiles shone through and she ran a few steps forward, dropping her coat on the ground.  
  
"Storm!" She cried. Storm continued to thunder towards her, throwing up thin clouds of dust every time one of her elegant hooves hit the ground. Rayman tugged at Sasha's wrist.  
  
"Sasha, get out of the way!" Sasha ignored Rayman's urgent voice and stood happily in Storm's path, confident that Storm had control over the situation. Storm showed no sign of slowing down as she got within a few metres of Sasha and stopped literally eye to eye with her. Sasha glanced down at Rayman.  
  
"See, she had it under control!" Rayman didn't answer, he was flat on his back having fainted with relief that Storm had stopped. Sasha rolled her eyes, raised her hand to stroke Storm's face and didn't flinch as Storm jerked her head up to meet it. "Let me see your leg Storm." Storm promptly raised her injured leg and allowed Sasha to examine it. Sasha bent double and looked over the wound, totally oblivious to the fact that Storm had picked up the end of her plait in between her teeth and was chewing it. The skin around the wound was puffy and tender but apart from that, it was healing nicely and didn't seem to be causing much bother judging by the speed with which Storm had turned up.  
  
"Ok girl, that'll heal up completely and no one'll ever know it was there! Oi!!" Sasha realised that her plait was disappearing into Storm's mouth. "Drop it!" Storm spat out the plait and made a noise that sounded uncannily like a human laugh. Sasha wrinkled her nose in disgust as she wiped the horse slobber off with her bare hands. Storm turned her attention on Rayman who still had not emerged from his coma and began to lick his face vigorously. Rayman's hands twitched and he laughed in his sleep.  
  
"Mmmm, get off, that tickles." His eyes flickered open and he let out a startled yell as he saw straight up one of Storm's nostrils and dodged away, accidentally kicking her in the face as he did so. Storm jumped away, snorting in anger. Sasha flung her plait over her shoulder and laughed slightly.  
  
"Serves you right Storm!" Storm snorted angrily again, tossed her mane and took threatening steps towards Rayman who backed away looking absolutely terrified. He raised his hands in defence as Storm broke into a trot but he knew he couldn't attack this creature.  
  
"Don't even think about it madam!" Sasha's voice, sharp and commanding cut across the air. Storm stopped dead and turned to face Sasha with a sheepish look in her eyes. Sasha glared at her, though her inner emotion was amusement. "Rayman's my friend thank you very much, and I'm not keen on seeing him get flattened!" Storm bounced forwards and buried her head in Sasha's chest. Rayman smiled at the forming bond between them. Sasha wrapped her arms around Storm and planted a kiss behind her ear. "I need to ask you a favour." Storm pulled her head away and cocked it to one side as if to say: "What is it?"  
  
"Can you come with us to the Cave Of Bad Dreams? There's something bad coming, we. Me Rayman and Jano I mean, need your help to defeat it. Can you come?" Storm slowly lowered her head and shook it dolefully from side to side. Sasha and Rayman stared at her, disappointment flowing between them. "Why not Storm? Are you. Oh." Sasha remembered something that Jano had read from the Book of the Ancients. "Do we need that uh. What was it? The Hyoran Amulet?" Storm nodded her head then let out a soft whinny and Sasha knew she was saying sorry. Storm suddenly cantered a few paces away from Rayman and Sasha and dropped onto her front knees. She whinnied. Sasha raised her eyebrows as Rayman shot a questioning glance at her. Storm whinnied again, louder this time, more impatiently. Then it hit Rayman.  
  
"Sasha, I think she's going to take us to the cave!" Storm snorted and nodded her head vigorously.  
  
"You're right, d'you ride?"  
  
"No, I don't!"  
  
"I do, so I'll go first." Sasha crouched down to pick up her coat and strode confidently over to Storm's shoulder, swung her leg over and pulled herself up onto her back. Rayman reluctantly followed but as he reached the horse's shoulder, Storm suddenly stood up straight, nearly knocking Sasha off balance. She swung her head round and snorted at Sasha, clearly expressing reluctance to let Rayman anywhere near her back.  
  
"I'm not sure she wants me to ride her." Said Rayman nervously, slowly backing away. Sasha rolled her eyes and spoke to Storm.  
  
"It was your fault you got kicked up the nose Storm, now let him up." Rayman approached again as Storm grudgingly sunk to her knees. Sasha grabbed the hand he extended and pulled him up. He settled himself behind her but before he could get a firm grip around Sasha's waist, Storm had launched straight into a flat out gallop from a standing start. Rayman shut his eyes tight, praying that he wouldn't fall off. Sasha however was casually holding on to a handful of Storm's mane and was experiencing no difficulty in keeping her seat.  
  
The ride on Storm was one of the most wonderful experiences that had ever happened to Sasha. At the speed that Storm was travelling, the wind should have been roaring in her ears and the pounding of Storm's hooves should have been easily audible. However, it was silent. Storm's mane and tail were flowing out behind her but Sasha's dark plait was flat on her back. It seemed to take hours, it seemed to take minutes, Sasha never knew but she did know that they arrived at the Cave of Bad Dreams safely. She dismounted and was surprised to find that her legs were trembling.  
  
"Thanks Storm." Sasha reached out a hand to scratch Storm between her ears. Storm closed her eyes and blew gently through her lips, clearly enjoying the attention. Rayman was frozen to her back and Sasha had to prise him off. He put a hand to his head.  
  
"Never again," He muttered. "Never, ever again."  
  
"Is that her?" Sasha jumped. She hadn't seen or heard Jano approach and his voice had startled her. She nodded.  
  
"This is Storm." Jano came slowly out of the cave and raised a hand to shield his eye from the glaring sun. Storm lowered her head and pawed the ground nervously as he approached her. Jano extended a hand but quickly withdrew it. He glanced up at Sasha, almost as though he was waiting for permission to touch Storm. In reply, Sasha laid a hand on Storm's hindquarters and gave her a gentle shove towards him.  
  
"Don't judge him by what you see." She murmured in an undertone to Storm. She raised her voice. "Go on Jano."  
  
Storm took a few nervous steps forward and Jano raised his hand to meet her. He had nearly made contact with her face when a something behind him spooked her. Panic flared in Storm's eyes as her head snapped up and she jerked around and ran. She was gone in seconds. A moment's silence followed.  
  
"Come into the cave, I've got something you'll need." Jano turned away and disappeared into the tunnel. Sasha was feeling depressed again. Whenever Storm departed, she always felt like that and she was irritated with herself for not being able to explain it. Rayman noticed her expression and he tried to say something comforting.  
  
"She'll come again. She really likes you."  
  
Sasha shrugged.  
  
"I'm really worried about her. Someone's tried to kill her once, what if they go for her again?"  
  
"You don't know that she was attacked, she might've had an."  
  
"Oh, Rayman, you didn't see the state she was in, you didn't see her! A horse doesn't get that worked up about catching its leg on a thorn, it just doesn't happen. No, someone went for her and they'll try again, I just know it."  
  
"Are you two coming?" Jano's voice, quietly commanding, cut through the air. Rayman and Sasha turned towards the guardian who was waving a hand towards the entrance to the cave. Rayman made the first move into the cave but stopped as he saw Sasha staring at the spot where Storm had been just moments before. Jano and Rayman exchanged looks and Jano spoke bracingly to Sasha.  
  
"The sooner you find Shalaki, the sooner you can protect Storm."  
  
Jano had been expecting Sasha to explode in anger after hearing those words but she did nothing of the sort. A tear ran down her face and she nodded.  
  
"Ok."  
  
The interior of the Cave of Bad Dreams was exactly the same as it always was except for the books. A pile of at least ten dusty, ancient books was sitting on the floor and if Rayman had had a neck, he would have broken it falling over them.  
  
"Jano," Rayman said, picking himself off the floor and dusting himself down, "Where did you get all of these books and why did you get them?"  
  
Jano suddenly grinned, a grin that sparkled with mischief.  
  
"The books? Oh they're just what intruders into the cave dropped when I chased them off." He spoke in a tone of utter innocence. Rayman and Sasha exchanged a look and Sasha challenged Jano.  
  
"I've never seen those around before."  
  
"There's a lot you don't see around in here." He replied evenly. Now-" Jano's tone turned business-like and he opened one of the books.  
  
"This," He said, tapping a piece of parchment tucked between the pages, "Is a map showing the route you need to take to find Shalaki. I'd guess that the journey would take a maximum of three days, are you prepared?"  
  
"You have no idea." Muttered Sasha as she remembered how angry she had gotten at the rucksack.  
  
"Alright then, now Sasha, you take this." Jano carefully closed the book and held it out to Sasha. She swung the rucksack off of her back and placed the book inside it. Jano glanced at her edgily, then pulled Rayman away slightly.  
  
"Rayman, It should be a relatively easy journey, as far as I know there are no real dangers on the route but I want you to be careful. We're not working under normal circumstances." Rayman nodded. "And be wary of Shalaki. She. she can help but she can also be a great danger to you. She's a-" Jano lowered his voice even further and Rayman had to lean closer to hear. "She's a twisted ancient."  
  
Rayman's eyebrows shot up and he took a quick glance at Sasha to check that she wasn't watching them.  
  
"A twisted ancient?" He muttered, after seeing that Sasha was still trying to stuff the book into her bag. "A twisted ancient?! How can a twisted ancient help us? And while I think about it, why is she roaming around this world unchecked?"  
  
"She's not roaming as such, I've heard that she's got her own kingdom and that's where the map will guide you to. I think you had better explain to Sasha what a twisted ancient is, you can exercise more control over her when she's appalled. And she will be."  
  
"I don't know much about a twisted ancient myself other than the fact that if you meet one you should climb up the nearest tree and stay there 'til it's gone."  
  
"Well, you know about Shaela and Azrael don't you?"  
  
Rayman's eyes narrowed and his breath came out in a low hiss.  
  
"Everyone knows about them."  
  
"Well, Shalaki's their daughter."  
  
Rayman was spared answering, as Sasha had finished with the rucksack and was staring at him and Jano with a faintly questioning expression. Rayman arranged his face into a smile and hoped that Sasha wasn't about to pull her usual stunt of reading his mind.  
  
"Better get going Sasha."  
  
Sasha nodded her agreement, deliberately not asking what he had on his mind.  
  
Jano escorted them out of the cave and said his farewells with anxiety.  
  
"You two be careful. Just promise me to be careful."  
  
Biting down slight impatience and keen to get moving, Sasha gave him her word and Rayman did the same.  
  
Jano watched as they walked away from him, up the road that led out of Rayman's world and carried on watching as they disappeared into the sunset.  
  
He turned his eye away from the spot where he had lost sight of them and muttered malevolently.  
  
"Shalaki, if you hurt them, I'll."  
  
But what he would do to Shalaki was never found out, as a few Zombie Chickens decided to take that particular moment to make a bid for freedom and Jano chased them back into the cave with a burst of flame from his mouth.  
  
"Accursed creatures." He muttered.  
  
A/N: Ugh, I don't think I'm too happy with this chapter. Well, I guess there's no help for it until I get feedback.  
  
The magic button is down here: 


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